Scandal - Some Thoughts

Abusive clergy are apostate clergy. People who really follow Christ do not harm or dishonor others. Catholic teaching demands chastity in all vocations. I am weary of people blaming the Church for bad Catholics. Bad Catholics are the Catholics who reject what Christ taught. Bad Catholics separate themselves from Christ and His Church by rejecting moral law. Ignorance of the teachings can only be claimed by those in third world countries with no access to the internet or books. Many lay people going back to WWII failed in teaching, accepted secular ways like pornography, masturbation, fornication and encouraged the world we know now. The sexual revolution and Vatican II was the perfect storm for the fall of Catholics who demanded the Church get with the times and swing and many in the Church did. Why are we surprised at what has happened? Now Catholics want to leave the Church when now they are needed to take courage and save it. We live in times of legal abortion in all 9 months and euthanasia of children. Why are we surprised some Catholics even high in the clergy have abused and scandalized the innocent often holy young men? Abuse has been going on and hidden in our public schools, in the workplace and in entertainment for decades. The problem is the only accusations and costs for these sins is expected from Roman Catholics and not everyone else. We need to read our Catechism and know what a sin is. I met a Catholic who told me they didn't know what a sin was and therefore could not go to confession. Well there's a cure for that, please read the Catechism and know the teachings. Pray for those who reject Christ. You will save the world and many souls. God bless.

The Worthy Wedding Gown

The wedding dress at yesterday’s royal wedding was tasteful, lovely and plain.  Meghan Markle asked for an unembellished gown and Clare Waight Keller of Givenchy gave her exactly that.  Meghan is a beautiful young woman and a woman glows in a tasteful, fitted gown.  Marketers of gowns don’t seem to understand marriage is a sacrament.  They confuse the wedding ceremony with the wedding night, confusing sacramental attire and lingerie.  If the bride walks up the aisle and appears to be topless, there is a problem.  We’ve all pitied lovely buxom bridesmaids constantly adjusting straining, halter, spaghetti straps which won’t stay up on their backless, frontless cocktail dresses.  You wonder who sold them those dresses.  What were they thinking?  Indeed the world has lost all sense of the sacred seen clearly at the MET Gala recently, “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.”  They had bodies and fashion of a sort but the "Catholic Imagination" of beauty and purity was nowhere to be seen.

Twenty three years ago I wore a wedding dress.  It was the most beautiful thing I have ever worn.  As a mature bride, I knew exactly what I wanted.  It was very hard to find.  My Matron of Honor chose a stunning plain burgundy gown with a matching bolero jacket.  That took a lot of looking.  “We’re the plain girls,” we told an inquiring saleslady over the rhinestone covered bows.  My mother and I went to several boutiques on the Main Line with no luck.  You would think they might have a few tasteful dresses.  However, the styles they carried only differed from warehouse gowns in price.  We were told by one haughty boutique saleswoman, “we have go-juss dresses.”  She showed me dress after dress covered with rhinestones, bows, lace, and artificial flowers.  The dresses had everything but sleeves and a neckline.  I asked if they had anything which covered the bust and had long sleeves.  She was astonished.  I said my wedding is going to be in a church.  She still didn’t understand why a dress cut down to the waste which evoked "Elvira Mistress of the Dark" would not be suitable to wear in church.  And sleeves?  What kind of a bride wears sleeves?  The haughty saleslady grimaced.  I was hard to please.  My mother had an idea.  Why not have a dress made?  We had 6 months.  So we found a dressmaker and started our adventure.  The seamstress gave us directives.  We found a vintage pattern with long sleeves, high neckline and a full skirt with a train.  Similar to the pattern shown in the photo with the neckline squared off.  We chose white satin.  I was literally the satin doll.  We paid about the same or less for this tailor made dress as the fancy shops charged for the topless, plastic encrusted wedding gowns.  The only trim were white satin buttons on the sleeves.  I found a full veil in a thrift shop.  I had a dress worthy to wear to receive the Sacrament of Marriage.